Seeking Strays

Quinn silently walked along the top of the wall surrounding Silverport. Not just anyone could access it—it was strictly a military zone. That being said, for a Guardian, they could mostly go where they wanted outside of select restricted zones.

The Guardian adjusted her jacket. Although rain pounded the top of the wall in heavy sheets, not a single drop fell on her. She moved along the wall with a single-minded focus for the east side.

Sylvie had moved into her apartment after Reyna left. It was supposed to be a short, temporary move. Living with someone else after being on her own for so long was a bit of a struggle. It did, however, let her know something was wrong immediately when the teenage Silver Wolf wasn’t home by the time she got off of work.

“Guardian!” A Perimeter Defense Force guard saluted her from his position. Her halo was on full display, and everyone PDF soldier she passed found themselves abruptly dried off. Her mind may have been weighed down, but Tidebreak’s control didn't slip for a moment.

Quinn nodded at the man without stopping to chat. This time around, she had a particular location in mind. She followed the familiar route, and spotted the silver-haired girl right where she expected to—just above the eastern gate.

She stood in the rain with her clothes absolutely soaked. Her tail twitched, and heavily dripped rain onto the wall. A puddle had already formed below her, and her frazzled silver hair was entirely soaked through. The rainjacket she had on was rendered basically useless by how long she’d been standing in the rain.

Sylvie’s ear twitched up the moment the rain stopped falling on her. She didn’t turn around, and instead leaned forward over the bulwark. “Quinn.”

”Figured I’d find you up here.” The Guardian moved forward, and stopped just next to her on the wall. Quinn patted the girl on the shoulder, and manipulated the water soaking her. In an instant, she was dried off.

“Thanks.” Her silver wolf ears pulled back slightly, though the tips remained dropped. It matched her tail in that regard.

”Mhmm.”

Silence stretched between the two, only broken up by rumbles of thunder from the sky above. Even the PDF guards that’d usually loiter around the area kept away and gave the two some distance.

“Where else would I be?” Sylvie finally spoke up after several minutes. Her voice was cracked and weak like she’d been screaming for days on end.

Quinn crossed her arms, and stared off into the Mire. The fog seemingly danced to a tune only it could hear. ”Home where it's dry and warm.”

“That place isn’t home…” The girl’s voice quieted even further until it was barely above a whisper, “nowhere is anymore.”

“You’ll catch a cold again like this.” Quinn felt a pang of guilt as she spoke. If only she would’ve gotten home sooner, she would’ve noticed the girl was out here sooner. “What would Reyna say?”

”She’d hug me, and nurse me back to health without a word of complaint.” Sylvie looked away from the Mire for the first time. Her glistening amber eyes locked onto the woman standing beside her.

”Yeah…” Quinn laughed softly. When she came in drunk to work on occasion, her best friend had basically done the same. “Reyna was like that, wasn’t she?”

“Is, Quinn. Reyna is like that.” The girl’s eyes hardened, and she looked away like she’d just seen something disgusting.

The rain around them faltered. ”I didn’t mean it like that—“

”You’ve already given up hope, haven’t you?” Sylvie asked. Her bloodshot eyes were ringed with red, and she practically radiated exhaustion.

Quinn winced. She wanted to believe, but she’d seen enough of the world to know how things really worked. “Lieutenant Harkness asked me to clean out her locker.”

“W-what’d you do?” The teenager’s voice broke.

”I left it… I figured you should be the one to do it.” It was a suggestion from Bryce, though she’d never admit to it. Before Tessa, he had another Canary.

“Why?” Her shoulders trembled fiercely. It was impossible to tell if it was from overwhelming emotion or from sitting out in the freezing rain for hours. “Why have all of you already given up hope?”

”It’s been two weeks, Sylvie. The expedition already came back without her, for Pyre’s sake.” Quinn regretted the words as soon as she spoke them. Funny. She’d been doing that a lot lately.

“… if that was you out there, do you think she’d have given up hope for you?”

”Never.” The reply was instant. There was zero doubt in her mind Reyna would charge out to come get her. That fact made the situation hurt all the more.

Quinn’s mind drifted back to the last conversation they had. Hope. It was what Reyna had been pursuing beyond the walls of the Mire. She didn’t know the circumstances, nor had she asked. She never asked. If she did, maybe her friend would’ve been honest for once?

The Guardian took a breath, and leaned forward over the edge of the wall. Regret ate at her. Even the bottom of a bottle couldn’t take that away. She should’ve treated her better. She truly never missed what she had until it was gone. Until it was far too late to grasp it tightly in her hands.

“She’ll come back,” Sylvie said, though it sounded like she was reassuring herself more than anything. Her drooped tail gave her away, just as Reyna’s always did.

“And you’re going to stand up here everyday until she does?” The question came out sharper than she intended, and the woman glanced over her shoulder to check. The sight made her heart throb.

“Yes.” Silent tears poured from sorrowful amber eyes. Sylvie stubbornly rubbed her already raw eyes roughly to clear them. “U-until she comes back.”

Quinn straightened up, and carefully pulled the girl into a hug. She didn’t know what else to do. The past few weeks, she’d felt more helpless than she’d felt in the past few years.

Sylvie let herself be pulled along, and her shoulders shook with barely suppressed sobs. Every breath hitched heavily like they were iron in her lungs. Throughout it all, the girl tried to keep up a brave front. The cracks were already starting to peek through, though.

Quinn had long prepared herself for Reyna’s death. Canaries, despite how skilled or smart or strong they were, hardly lasted long. She knew the day would come eventually. Knowing that and living it were two very different things.

“She used to hug me like this,” Sylvie said after a few moments. Her tail twitched around, and loosely folded in between them. “Her tail would wrap mine. I never felt more safe.”

“I had to hug her.” Quinn laughed lightly, and couldn’t help but compare how different it was to hold the two sisters. “She would always try to wiggle away.”

“Sounds like sis.” Sylvie’s lips twitched into a smile. It faded, and her red eyes cleared for a moment. Her lupine ears shot up alertly. ”You were her partner… Why didn’t you keep her safe?”

”I tried,” Quinn whispered. The sheer accusation radiating off the teen made her duck her head in shame. A few drops of rain scattered across her hair before drying off once more.

She really had. When she realized she couldn’t talk Reyna out of it, she went straight to Captain Voin to pressure him. The weasel of a man hadn’t even flinched. Whoever was backing the expedition was far more important than her family, it seemed.

“I’m sorry.” Sylvie’s expression melted once more, and she dropped her head. Her ears flattened once more. Her silver hair fell like a curtain around her face. “She talked about you frequently, you know?”

Like this, the two sisters looked far too similar. For a moment, it felt like she was holding Reyna once more. The cold reality stole her breath away. ”She did?”

“Almost everyday she’d tell me how great you were.” Sylvie looked up, and her amber eyes flashed with ghostly green from a passing guard. “It was annoying.”

”I bet.” Reyna… She could appreciate everyone but herself. Probably made her out to be a legend instead of saying she was a barely functioning alcoholic.

Sylvie’s eyes dropped once more. “She always praised Guardian Tidebreak valiantly fighting for a better future and protecting the people.”

Quinn’s mouth opened, though no words came out. When she could finally speak, everything she was going to say melted away. Her voice cracked, and she coughed to cover it. “She was an idiot.”

“But my idiot.” Sylvie’s arms tightened. “She wasn’t reported KIA like the others. I-if she’s still alive, do you think she’d…”

“If anyone could make it back, it’d be Reyna. Her Aspect will guide her.” She said idly. It was a mere bandaid slapped onto the wounds that her careless words inflicted.

Sylvie’s shoulders trembled even more. “Aspect?”

“Yeah? Her tracking Aspect?” Something was off. Quinn could feel it in the air, though she couldn’t quite place her finger on it. Not yet, anyway. “I’ve seen it in action. No way she’d get lost out there.”

”She doesn’t have…” Sylvie’s soft mutter was lost in the storm. Although the tail end was lost, the result was devastating. As if just realizing something, sobs broke out in full force. The grief twisted with a hint of betrayal, which only churned out more sorrow.

Quinn watched her in confusion. Doesn’t have? Did Sylvie not know that Reyna had an Aspect? That wasn’t right. That couldn’t be the case. If anyone, Sylvie would know the truth about her big sister… What if Reyna didn’t have an Aspect? Pieces slowly locked into a partial puzzle.

She thought she knew Reyna. Did she? What else had her friend lied about? Did she even really know her? All those unexplained injuries she thought came from training too hard… just what was her best friend caught in?

Boom!

Thunder rumbled in the distance, though neither one of them even flinched at the sound. They were too busy trying to hold each other up. It was no surprise that the younger of the two broke first.

“I don’t know what to do. I don’t know what to do!” The girl pressed her head forward against Quinn’s chest and wailed. “How do I make it right?!”

”… I don’t know either.” Quinn’s arms sagged. She just held the girl until her cries turned quiet once more. Minutes ticked by, and the grief-filled sobs faded under the constant rain.

Eventually, she pulled back slightly. Sylvie’s nose twitched, and her expression fell even further. “… have you been drinking again?”

Quinn’s arms tightened, and she subconsciously sniffed at herself. “I just… I haven’t washed this shirt yet.”

“But you promised!” The girl pounded on Quinn’s chest. Her fists held no true strength, though. The tears pouring from her eyes wounded more than the actual impacts.

”Sylvie…” Her voice drifted, and rain splatted across the two of them. Her focus snapped back a moment later, and they dried off instantly.

”I-if even you can break your promises—“ The young Silver Wolf broke into pained sobs once more, and her hand clenched on the front of Quinn’s shirt. In an instant, her rage melted into bond-deep sorrow.

“…” The Guardian could only stand there, holding her. Reyna used to deal with children every time they went out in the field. She always made it look so easy… She always made everything look so easy. What would they do without her?

“She’ll come back,” the young Silver wolf whispered to herself.

Everything slowly faded until it was just the two, wounded and heavy-hearted. The patrolling PDF, heavy rain, and wall of fog beyond Silverport’s radiance all became mere background details as Quinn’s focus sharpened on Sylvie. She took Reyna for granted. She’d couldn't do the same with Sylvie.

Sylvie’s nails tensed uselessly across Quinn’s back. ”Reyna… she promised… didn’t she?”